How the Delays to Obamacare Affect You

Employers have an extra year to insure their workers.

What’s Going On? - The White House announced a one-year delay in the mandate for the Affordable Care Act last week requiring employers with 50 or more employees to provide health insurance. Employers must offer health care now by January 1, 2015—instead of 2014—or face paying a penalty. But what does this mean and who does this affect?—Kellee Terrell(Photo: REUTERS/Joshua Roberts)

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What’s Going On? - The White House announced a one-year delay in the mandate for the Affordable Care Act last week requiring employers with 50 or more employees to provide health insurance. Employers must offer health care now by January 1, 2015—instead of 2014—or face paying a penalty. But what does this mean and who does this affect?—Kellee Terrell(Photo: REUTERS/Joshua Roberts)

Who Does This Affect? - If you already have insurance or if you work for a company that offers insurance this doesn’t apply to you. But for low-income workers (disproportionately people of color) who work at fast-food joints, temp agencies or hotels this does affect you, the Associated Press reported. The good news: You may still be able to get insurance if you qualify for subsidized insurance. (Photo: Win McNamee/Getty Images)

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Who Does This Affect? - If you already have insurance or if you work for a company that offers insurance this doesn’t apply to you. But for low-income workers (disproportionately people of color) who work at fast-food joints, temp agencies or hotels this does affect you, the Associated Press reported. The good news: You may still be able to get insurance if you qualify for subsidized insurance. (Photo: Win McNamee/Getty Images)

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Why the Delay? - Most businesses claim that they need more time to figure out how to pay for insurance for their workers. It’s also believed that this delay gives the White House more time to smooth out the rough patches of this mandate. But the government is clear: The delay will not go past one year. (Photo: Joe Raedle/Getty Images)

Photo By Joe Raedle/Getty Images

Stepping Up Mental Health for All - Obama plans to expand Medicaid services so that low-income individuals can afford access to quality mental health professionals.(Photo: David Ramos/Getty Images)

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Are These Delays Detrimental? - For people who do not qualify for subsidized insurance or Medicaid, this could mean they would have to wait another full year for affordable health care — which is a problem. But others say it may be a “good” thing for now because it means companies won’t have to lay off workers, implement hiring freezes or reduce workers’ hours as they threatened to do, if they had to insure their workers. (Photo: David Ramos/Getty Images)

Photo By Photo: David Ramos/Getty Images

How the Mandate Itself Impacts Vulnerable Workers - Past studies have found that the employer mandate (without the delays) would mostly impact people of color, women and unskilled Black and Latino teens, given that they account for the large portion of minimum wage employees, writes Forbes. And it's these workers that would be more likely to be laid off if and the mandate begins. (Photo: Spencer Platt/Getty Images)

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How the Mandate Itself Impacts Vulnerable Workers - Past studies have found that the employer mandate (without the delays) would mostly impact people of color, women and unskilled Black and Latino teens, given that they account for the large portion of minimum wage employees, writes Forbes. And it's these workers that would be more likely to be laid off if and the mandate begins. (Photo: Spencer Platt/Getty Images)

This Isn’t the Only Snag   - Medicaid expansion, another critical component of the Affordable Care Act, has faced serious obstacles over the past year. The expansion has been based on whether states accept it given that half of our states have either opted out or are undecided. By 2014, 9.7 million Americans could go without health coverage. (Photo: Scott Olson/Getty Images)

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This Isn’t the Only Snag   - Medicaid expansion, another critical component of the Affordable Care Act, has faced serious obstacles over the past year. The expansion has been based on whether states accept it given that half of our states have either opted out or are undecided. By 2014, 9.7 million Americans could go without health coverage. (Photo: Scott Olson/Getty Images)